Cancer in pregnancy

For nearly a decade, we have been leading an innovative research project on the treatment of cancer in pregnant women. Our research team studies the effects of various cancer therapies on the health of both mother and child.

The results of our work are both remarkable and reassuring: they show that pregnant women with cancer can be treated just as effectively as non-pregnant women.

We are currently monitoring 104 children in Belgium whose mothers received chemotherapy during pregnancy. Our results show that the treatment has no adverse effect on the health and development of the child. Adverse effects are more likely to occur as a consequence of premature birth than of cancer treatment during pregnancy. In the years to come, we want to refine our conclusions and confirm them in longer-term studies in collaboration with international colleagues and partners. We also want to invest in the search for fertility-sparing cancer treatments.

We are glad to share our findings with you and hope that the information on this website can be relevant for colleagues all over the world. Please do not hesitate to contact us with your questions or remarks. We would also like to invite you to join our team or to participate in the INCIP network. And of course we hope that our work can assist doctors and patients in making difficult yet life-saving treatment decisions.

In 2015, we have celebrated the 10-year anniversary of the start of this research project by organizing an international symposium in Leuven. Renowned speakers have discussed the various aspects of cancer during pregnancy and of cancer and fertility. More information can be found on the website. I would like to thank you for attending and sharing your vision and experience during this inspiring conference.